Issue 142 Item 1 Impaired Glucose Tolerance Linked to Memory Decline

Poor glucose tolerance is associated with cognitive deficits. Although memory impairment has been reported in diabetics, the association between impairment in glucose regulation and memory deficits in elderly individuals remains unknown.

Therefore, Dr. Antonio Convit, of the New York University School of Medicine, and colleagues studied 30 healthy individuals between the ages of 53 and 89 years, none of whom was diabetic or exhibited signs of dementia. I.V. glucose tolerance tests were conducted, and memory was assessed using Wechsler Paragraphs recall tests. Hippocampal and brain volumes were measured by MRI.

"Baseline blood glucose levels and 2-hour glucose were significantly associated with hippocampal atrophy" (p < 0.05 after adjusting for age and scores on the Mini Mental State Exam). Two-hour glucose levels were also associated with delayed recall (p < 0.05), and there was a trend for baseline glucose to predict memory impairment, he added.

Dr. Antonio Convit pointed out that among diabetics in their 30s and 40s, there is evidence of memory dysfunction even before signs of cardiovascular disease develop. "So we would hypothesize that even younger individuals with insulin resistance may have memory problems."

"This kind of data can be useful in motivating people who don’t care about how they look if they’re a little heavy, but they may care about their memory performance," he added.

If their findings are replicated, Dr. Convit said, "then either pharmacological interventions to improve people’s insulin resistance or behavioral interventions will be worth studying." Proc Natl Acad Sci 2003. www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.0336073100